Hatched Into Life
by EraTomo
Summary: Life: Suddenly in Technicolor. The Drama hasn't even begun. xx; "I'm not kidding! If I had been able to protect her, this wouldn't have happened!" AU PLOT MERGED WITH AMELIA'S AND ADAM'S
1. Relations in a Nutmeg

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Hatched Into**_ Life_**

This story is crack that spent five days incubation time in my brain and finally hatched into life. If you have any ideas, please review and leave suggestions. Thanks.

Also, I describe Kairi's eyes like the sky, because if you've ever seen the ocean, you've seen that it's pretty green. Not blue. Maybe, if you see it from the sky it would appear blue, or at a distance. But up close it's pretty green.

Disclaimer: I do not own Disney or the Kingdom Hearts games, or anything to do with either of them.

Summary: Life: Suddenly in Technicolor. The Drama hasn't even begun. xx) "I'm not kidding! If I had been able to protect her, this wouldn't have happened!"

---

Kairi stared blankly at herself in the mirror. It was the first day of high school. She had met a few people over the summer vacation, thank goodness, but here was the big test. She was still technically the 'new girl.' If she didn't have any classes with her friends, Kairi didn't know what she would do.

She paused and took another moment to add a tiny bit of dramatic lime green eye shadow over her deep blue eyes. She smiled. Her eyes were obviously one of her best features. They were as deep as any ocean, and as blue as the clearest sky. She immediately began giggling, remembering that had been a quote one of her new friends had used. Her heart bounced at the thought of him. His pale blue eyes, his hair-- the darkest black, as black as the darkest obsidian gem. She chuckled again. Of course, her friends might not like the fact that she liked him, or they might expect it-- they all three had dated him before.

Kairi let out a nervous sigh. She didn't know for sure what she and her friends had in common. They spent their time gossiping about people Kairi hadn't met yet. All the people they did talk about sounded like idiots, though. Sluts, whores, bitches, bastards, geeks, nerds, goody two shoes, preps, punks, goths, emos, all of them with a label. Not one good thing was said about any of them. Sometimes Kairi was afraid that they talked about her behind her back, too. She stared at her reflection in the mirror again. _They wouldn't do that to me,_ she told herself firmly.

Before long she had finished applying her mascara, blush, eye liner, lip gloss and lip balm. She decided to use cover up at the last minute. Finally satisfied she hadn't forgotten any of the things her friends normally ask.. well, tell her to wear, she made sure her outfit was perfect. Lo and behold, for the first day of school she chose to wear a short white miniskirt that showed off her legs, pink shoes that had small heels, and a pink tank top with a small white jacket on top. Just like her friends had told her it needed to, the top showed off her chest or lack there of. Her friends had made sure this was everything she needed for school. Checking to make sure her backpack was packed, Kairi remembered to put her P.E. or Physical Education clothes in her backpack too.

"Kairi! Get your butt down here this instant!" Her mother yelled from the first floor landing. Kairi messed with her auburn hair just once more, then grabbed her backpack and raced down the stairs.

"Kairi! Do you know when your bus is supposed to come?" Kairi's mother had long auburn hair just like her daughter's, but her eyes were a bright green. As of now she was impatiently tapping her foot against the hardwood floor, making an annoying slapping noise.

"Um.. No, mom." Kairi admitted sheepishly.

"Three minutes ago." Her mother announced triumphantly.

"Thanks ma, gotta go!" Kairi yelled and dashed out the door as fast as her heeled feet could carry her.

---

Upon finally reaching the bus stop and making it onto the bus, Kairi was very annoyed. She didn't like all of the stares from the people she didn't know, which happened to be directed more to her body than to her face. She wished they would just stop drooling! She wasn't that attractive. Didn't everone dress like this? Finally one of her friends appeared on the bus. She was a tall and skinny brunette with large green eyes. Her friends called her Cherry Top because she was always wearing a red shirt. Kairi waved to her. Cherry Top made eye contact with her, rolled her eyes and then kept walking. Suddenly Kairi felt sick. Was Cherry Top angry at Kairi already? What had she done wrong? Did she forget something? She mentally went through a list of things: makeup, clothes, accessories, and mannerisms. Then her heart froze. She had forgotten earrings. _Oh, great,_ she thought to herself sarcastically, _my first day of school is ruined because I forgot to wear earrings._ Then she realized that Cherry Top wasn't wearing any of the clothes she had suggested Kairi wear. She wore no short skirt, just skinny blue jeans. There were no heels, instead brown and slightly worn flip flops. No mini jacket and no tank top either, but her shirt did reveal cleavage.

As the rest of Kairi's 'friends' got on and each of them ignored Kairi or rolled their eyes, Kairi's heart dropped lower and lower and lower until she feared it would stop. No one with short skirts. No one tripping in high heels. Not even that much make up clouded their faces. Why not?

A radiant girl climbed onto the bus, a blonde with eyes as blue as Kairi's. When she saw Kairi, she slowed and looked at her carefully, then continued to walk as if nothing had happened, although she did mutter something under her breathe about "sluts."

That's it. That's it. My life is over! Kairi thought desperately. No one was wearing things as short or slutty as Kairi; her friends had only meant for her to take their place as the school slut. Fighting tears, she looked over her shoulder timidly at her 'friends.' The blonde girl had apparently been talking to Kairi's old friends, and stormed off angrily to a seat down the aisle. The girls laughed. When one of them noticed Kairi's tearful stare, she nudged the rest and whispered something. Their laughter grew even louder. The next time the bus stopped the blonde switched seats to sit next to Kairi. 

"Hello.. You're new?" She guessed softly.

"Yeah.." Kairi said, sucking up her tears. "I'm Kairi. Nice to meet you?" She said unsurely.

"Actually, yeah. I know what the Slut Patrol did to you." The girl continued.

"Really? The Slut Patrol?" Kairi questioned.

"Yeah. There are tons of different groups in our school, and they are the worst. Everybody hates them, but they are completely oblivious. Even the stuck up preps are better than those girls. Here." She took out some wet cloths that apparently she carried in her backpack. Then Kairi knew: This girl was Namine, a nerdy and silly girl who supposedly liked to be mean to everyone she met. At least, thats what her 'friends' had told her, but what did they say matter now?

"Thanks." Kairi said, taking the wet cloth and attempting to wipe off her makeup.

"I'm Namine by the way. I expected this to happen again this year. Over winter break it had happened to another girl. She was second one, so I figured I'd want to be prepared this time, just in case. You brought spare shoes for PE, didn't you?" Kairi nodded. "Change into those shoes. Some people do wear tennis shoes with skirts here. It's better than being caught in heels, anyways." Kairi nodded again and looked at the cloth she had wiped her face with, shocked to see the three or four different colors she had smeared onto her face that morning. She smiled, and turned to Namine. "Thanks."

----

The morning passed by quickly enough. Band, which was Kairi's favorite class, passed by quickly because everybody was friendly. The next week they were going to get to start actually marching, something completely new to her. She gripped her flute tightly and listened to every word the instructor said, though when she left the class she didn't think she had actually learned anything tht would help her. Finally she was dismissed from that class to be transported to another area of the school by bus. Language Arts, normally another one of Kairi's favorites, passed by as slowly as waiting for honey to pour out of the end of a cup. Her class was being forced to write and read things they didn't want to, and the kept teacher mumbling on and on with long vooooweelllsss like a druuunkenn louuut.

PE, Kairi's third hour, was the best. They ran around and had fun, even if they did get sweaty. Kairi was introduced to one of Namine's friends, Selphie Tilmitt. She was a spunky brunette with bright green eyes, and a crazy little hairdo that flipped up at the ends. Kairi got along with her well, talking about their summer vacations and learning who's who and what's what. Kairi was even able to borrow a spare pair of Selphie's pants. Last year, she had spillt juice all over her jeans at lunch and had to go the whole day with people wondering if she had failed to learn how to use a pad and a toilet, so she now carried a spare pair in her PE locker.

Math was a lazy hour with a few people from the Slut Patrol, and Kairi paid no attention to the lesson. She began to wonder how many times someone could wish the clock to move faster before it actually would. It didn't help any that her teacher was on drugs from having breast cancer treatment. Finally, it was time for lunch. Kairi charged down two flights of stairs and into the cafeteria. The school was huge, but the entire cafeteria wasn't even halfway filled up even when filled with all of the students in the school. Kairi asked Namine about it in the lunch line.

"Well, our school had been built for a huge booming city, once." She began.

"Yeah, until a war started and everybody moved away to forts and stuff." Selphie continued.

"All of the kid's families who used to live here moved away, leaving only the people who owned businesses and a few others to stay." Namine finished. "Which reminds me, why did you come here?"

"Oh.. you know, eheh, family stuff. My mom got a new job, I mean. It's pretty cool." Kairi said lamely.

"Ew, look at those beans, they look like butts!" Selphie was already on another topic.

"So," Namine continued, ignoring Selphie who huffed gently, "This school was left all barren and empty. Actually, you've noticed how bad a condition it's in, right?" Kairi nodded. The ceiling tiles were falling off and the heating ducts had mold all over them. The floors were stained with water, and the ceilings, walls and windows still leaked from the last night's drizzle. The heating systems were all uncontrollable. Even the lights weren't fixed, and the school had had a whole summer to fix them!

"They're trying to decide whether or not to close down the school!" Selphie jumped in excitedly.

"Selphie!"

"Sorry."

"Anyways, if they do, we'll all be sent to boarding schools, with uniforms, and dormitories, and no freedom!" Namine exclaimed.

"There's not any towns that would take us in?" Kairi questioned.

"Not for the nearest three hours drive. All of the other ones are small towns, tourist attractions, like." Selphie stopped to pay for her food, and went to find a table.

Kairi followed, and then Namine. If she was sent to a boarding school, that meant being separated from her unstable mom. But, then Namine and Selphie would be sent to different schools, too...

"They aren't here?" Namine was saying.

"No. True to their word, they skipped out on school!"

"Wow." Namine whistled. "Skipping the First Day of School."

"They never were ones for rules." Selphie pointed out.

"Who? Who?!" Kairi asked.

"Oh. Our friends, these two guys. Remember? We were just telling you about them!"

"Three guys, Selphie. Don't forget the old man."

"But he's an old man, not a guy! And what about Camo Boxers?"

"He's like a model for underwear, not a guy." Namine began to giggle.

"He probably dragged Olette with him anyways." Selphie added.

"They will be here tomorrow, so just wait, Kairi. Besides, then you can present your true self to them. Not this stupid preppy Slut Patrol experiment." Namine finished.

---

Throughout the rest of her afternoon classes, which were Biology, World History and German, Kairi was excited and waiting. Even more friends, and they were guys. That was definately a plus. _Today is just a great day, _Kairi thought happily.

Finally it was after school, and Kairi got on the bus. Namine was getting a ride home from her father today. She needed to remember to get their contact information_. I wonder what those guys are like._ She smiled, imagining a suave guy and then a computer nerd. _I definitely should have asked Namine when I had the chance._ Her thoughts were interrupted when the guy with black hair and bright blue eyes appeared. He looked at her, sniffed, and walked off chuckling. Kairi's mood went south from there, though she tried not to let it show. Even if he was one of the Slut Patrol, she couldn't help matters of the heart.

---------

My mind is on a one way track: Tea, shower, sleep. Maybe write more just because I'm excited about this story.

Review, please. Always great motivation!

EraTomo


	2. A New Face is Worth 1000 Words

_**Hatched**_ Into _**Life**_

Tis Chapter Two! Rejoice!

Disclaimer: I don't own Disney, Kingdom Hearts, or anything to do with Kingdom Hearts.

Summary: Life: Suddenly in Technicolor. The Drama hasn't even begun. xx; "I'm not kidding! If I had been able to protect her, this wouldn't have happened!"

---

Kairi smiled at herself in the mirror. She was so glad she didn't have to put three pounds of makeup on her face today. No, today all Kairi wore was lip balm. She had never been fond of makeup, anyways. A glance at her clock let her know she had fifteen minutes before she should leave for the bus. She checked her outfit to make sure it was completely her style. Today, to show off her 'true self' as Namine had put it, Kairi wore a white tank top underneath a light pink top. Her dark blue jeans were baggy enough for her to move around comfortably, and her white sneakers, as old as they were, paired nicely with the entire ensemble. _No earrings today!_ Kairi thought cheerfully to herself. She hummed to herself as she trotted down the stairs and into her kitchen.

"Good morning, Ma." Kairi kissed her mother on the cheek, then got out some toaster waffles with chocolate chips.

"Eh? Kairi, you actually look human today." Kairi's mom said nonchalantly, scanning through the morning newspaper.

"Yeah, some girls from school rescued me from the Sl..." Kairi glanced at her mother and changed her word choice. "Slightly Strange Patrol."

"Who're they?"

"Those other girls I hung out with over summer vacation. Turns out they're jerks." Kairi grabbed the waffles as they popped out of the toaster, then proceeded to smother them with whipped cream.

Her mother glanced at Kairi's plate. "You shouldn't suffocate them, Kairi."

"I'm not, Mom." She said, with her mouthful of whipped cream and waffley goodness. "I'm treating them to heaven before they die. It's actually really nice of me."

"Look at the clock." Her mother replied, ignoring Kairi's comments. Kairi glanced at the kitchen clock, and finished her waffles. Five minutes left. She raced up the stairs to brush her teeth, then grabbed her backpack and ran back down the stairs.

"Bye ma!" Her mom waved to her without taking her eyes from the paper.

---

Kairi plopped into a bus seat with a heavy sigh. She felt tired, yet awake, and she hated it. She wished she could pick one and stick with it. The next stop, Cherry Top got on. She stared Kairi in the eye as she got on. Kairi put a sweet smile on her face and waved. The smile immediately switched to a glare as soon as Cherry Top passed. Over the next few stops the rest of the Slut Patrol got on, excluding their man candy. Soon enough it was the stop before Namine's. She was excited to show Namine her clothes and face. _100 fake free! _Kairi chuckled to herself and then began daydreaming about selling herself as a product. The bus jolted into motion and Kairi hit the seat in front of her, causing the Slut Patrol to explode with bubbly laughter. Then shouts came floating from the back of the bus:

"Hey! Slow down!"

"We forgot a kid! Haa! Look at 'im run!"

"SLOW DOWN!"

The bus slowed and came to a full stop. The people at the back started shouting, "Everybody stare at him when he comes on! No, no, better yet, everybody start laughing when he comes on!" Kairi just turned to the front, trying not to laugh. They waited for a few moments, and then finally the bus doors open. Amidst laughter and stares, a brunette came up the steps. His hair was spiked out in several different directions. At first, Kairi wanted to poke it to see if it would hurt her. The next thing she noticed was his eyes. They were a lovely, deep blue. As deep and blue as the sky... just like hers! Kairi just barely stopped herself from gasping. The eyes glanced around the bus and found her. The owner of the eyes came quickly down the aisle and slipped into the seat in front of her. The bus jolted into motion again.

"Hey, you're Kairi, aren't you?" He asked her.

"Um... Yeah. Do I know you?" She asked him.

"Oh, heh. I'm Sora. Didn't Namine tell you about me?" Just as he said that, Namine got on the bus and raced to sit next to Kairi.

"Hey Sora, Kairi. You two've finally met." Namine said cheerfully, ignoring or not seeing Kairi's stare that clearly said, 'Who the heck is this?'

"More or less," Sora mumbled. Kairi chuckled a little.

Namine turned to Kairi. "This is one of the guys I told you were coming to school today, after they _skipped_ the First Day!" She shot a quick glare at Sora.

"Well, we made a pact! What could I do?"

"I swear, I skip one week of talking to you guys, and that's what you come up with to do."

"Don't leave us alone with Selphie this time." Sora said, making up an excuse.

"What does she have to do with this? She didn't do anything!"

"Says you!" Sora retorted. "For all you know, she could've put a gun to our heads and said, 'If you don't do as I say, I'll shoot!'"

"I can totally see Selphie doing that." Namine said sarcastically while rolling her eyes.

"Yeah. Turned out the gun was empty. EM-PU-TAH." Kairi broke out into a fit of giggles.

"What kind of accent was that?" She asked in between giggling fits.

"A Norwegian one." Sora decided.

"It sounded like a toad." Namine bluntly said.

"Hey! My accents are _way_ better than you say they are!"

_Man, I could get used to these guys,_ Kairi thought to herself. Namine stood and hit Sora's spike-protected head. _Or maybe not._

"So it doesn't hurt to touch your spikes!" Kairi exclaimed. Sora turned to look at her.

"Not unless you want it to." He said simply. Kairi began laughing again, then attempted to straighten her face. "That sounded like a threat!"

"Take it as you want to."

"Meaning...?" Namine asked.

"Um... I got nothing. It's your stop, Kay-ray." Sora said.

"It's Kairi." She corrected him.

"I know that. I guess I can't use that as a nickname though."

Namine said, "You know, when you actually mean to be funny, you aren't."

"How do you know I was trying to be funny?" Kairi rolled her eyes and squeezed past Namine to get off of the bus.

--------

Today in band, Kairi actually learned a little more than last time. She also learned the proper way to march.

_Heel, side, toe. Heel, side toe. _She chanted inside her head, staring right at her feet. _Heel, side, toe._ She looked up just in time to avoid running into a random trombone player. "Sorry!" She apologized.

"Hey, it's no problem. Are you new?" The guy said. He had hazel eyes and brown hair kept up by a sweatband that looked like it had seen its fair share of use.

"Um, yeah, actually. I'm Kairi."

"The name's Pence."

"Hehe, nice to meet you." Kairi said sheepishly.

"Same."

"YOU TWO!" The instructor barked. "KEEP MARCHING! If you don't learn this you will never be good in Band!"

"Sorry, sorry..." Kairi mumbled and continued her marching. _Heel, side, toe..._

Language arts passed by boring as usual, but at least Kairi got to wave to Pence. She smiled to herself, glad that there was a new friend she had made. Finally P.E. rolled around, and Kairi spotted a new girl in their class who was chatting with Namine, Selphie, Sora, and Pence. She trotted up. The girl and soft and wavy brown hair with sparkling green eyes. In other words, she was beautiful.

"Oh, hey Kairi! Meet Olette!" Selphie bounced up to Kairi and gestured to the new girl. "She skipped school with the guys yesterday." She continued in a quieter voice. "Of course, she's a goody two shoes, so she keeps them out of any horrible trouble."

"Hey, nice to meet you." Olette greeted Kairi warmly.

"Nice to meet you too!" Kairi said happily. Even in their P.E. uniform, an orange school shirt and any pants they wanted, the girl looked radiant. "I like your hair."

"Haha, thanks. Lots of people do, I guess."

Suddenly a basketball came flying out of nowhere to hit Selphie on the back of the head.

"Owie! What was up with that? Someone had better apologize!!" She yelled angrily.

"Mmm, yeah, sorry bout that." A blonde kid with camoflague shorts ran up to her. His hair was halfway spiked in a weird way. "It was all his fault!" He said, and pointed to a guy with silver hair.

"Was not. If you were taller, you would have caught the ball." The silver haired person retorted, and came to join the group.

"Ugh. Thanks, Riku. Now I'm gonna have a headache all day. It's all your fault. At least act sorry!" Selphie said.

The silver haired boy, Riku, stuck out his lower lip and frowned in an overdone sad pose. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to kill your puppy!" He sobbed.

"Oh, get over it!" Selphie said now.

"Make up your mind!" The blonde kid came to Riku's rescue.

"I don't need your rescue!" Riku announced.

"He doesn't need your rescue, Hayner!" Selphie told him. "Now get out of the way." She grabbed the basketball from Hayner's hands and then said menacingly, "Run, Grandpa, run!!" She continued to chase him around the gym.

"Um, what's up with those two?" Kairi jumped. Unnoticed in the commotion, another blonde kid had snuck up behind her. "How many of you are there?!" She shrieked.

"Well, there's only one Tidus that I know of." He proclaimed.

"Yeah, thank God." Sora said.

"No, no, I mean how many blondies are there?" She corrected herself.

"Hey, I resent that!" Namine exclaimed.

The whistle blew, and they dispersed to jog around in circles.

------------------

In math, Kairi was absolutely bored. At least Olette was in her class, but of course she had to be on the other side of the room by the Slut Patrol and the wanna-be preppies. She looked like she was going to die of suffocation of snob. Glancing at her, she accidentally made eye contact with 'him.' Somewhere in the back of her head she wondered, why wasn't he in this class yesterday? He just returned her absentminded gaze, not smiling, but not frowning either. She smiled a little, then turned back to the front. She didn't look Olette's way the rest of the hour.

At lunch, Kairi stared absently at the green mush on her plate. "I think I should start bringing home lunch." Namine laughed and handed Kairi a roll. Their lunch table had filled up a lot more, and it now included Pence, Hayner, Tidus, Olette, Riku, and Sora. It seemed there was nonstop chatter. The air was so thick with talking Kairi almost felt like she was going to suffocate. She grinned. _Yep, I could definately get used to this!_

In Biology, Olette approached Kairi's desk. "You're not mad at me are you?" She asked timidly.

Kairi chuckled. "No, where would you get that idea?"

Olette laughed. Kairi's smile got bigger; Olette's laugh was contagious. "I just get vibes from people sometimes. You weren't talking at lunch, and when you looked at me during math you didn't look happy."

"Oh, no, it wasn't you, it was..." She trailed off, thinking about what had happened.

Olette grinned widely. "Ooh, so Kairi has a crush?" Kairi looked up, horrifyed.

"What? No.. shh! Be quiet! I mean, how can you tell?"

"You were blushing and I guessed. Haha, you're so easy to figure out." The bell rang, and Olette went to her seat. Kairi glanced at 'him' and saw him watching Olette go to the back of the room. She turned her gaze to the front of the room. Of course he would like her, she's absolutely beautiful. And here I am, just me. She knew she wasn't ugly, but she still wasn't as pretty as Olette was.

---------------

Kairi sat down in History with a huff. Riku sat next to her. "Hey, what's up with you?"

"I hate things." She said into her arms.

"I never would've expected you to act emo."

"I'm not emo!" She protested.

"Oh, on your time of the month?"

"Ugh! No! You are so sick, Riku!" She said, mildly annoyed.

He shrugged, saying, "I am what I am. Sam I am. Ma'am, I am. Ram, I am." He continued, trying to see how many things he could fit into the sentence for it to still work. Kairi halfway listened to him, even chuckling a bit.

---------------

German passed by insanely quickly. There were no guy problems in that hour, because Tidus, Riku, Sora, and Hayner had all decided to take it too. She spent all of that hour listening to their perverted conversations. By the end of the hour, she was horrified.

"Look at what you guys are doing to me! I actually understand your jokes!" She exclaimed.

"Yess! We've converted her!" Sora exclaimed, and the rest of the guys responded with a huzzah and loud slapping of hands.

--------------

Kairi was on the bus when Namine ran up and sat in the seat in front of her. "Kairi, Kairi, guess what?! I don't know if it's horrible, or, or great, or, or what!" She breathed.

"What's going on?" Kairi was clueless.

"They're going to close down the school! It's pretty much official! Well, almost, or whatever! They still need to figure out a date, and if someone gives them money they probably won't, but right now they're saying school will close down before First Semester is over!" Namine said, speaking as quickly as she could.

Kairi sighed, feeling pretty depressed. "Really?"

"Yeah..." Silence extended between the two. Sora came on the bus and sat in the seat opposite of Namine. Apparently not in the mood for talking, he immediately took out his iPod and began listening to whatever he had on there.

"How much money do they need?" Kairi asked as the bus began to move.

"Something like $80,000." Namine sighed.

"Why that much?"

"Well, we need a ton of renovations, and people think there's asbestos in the boiler room of the main school." Namine explained.

"Yeah, we also need new school lunch but that won't happen." Namine chuckled a little, and then turned back around in her seat.

Kairi spent the rest of the bus ride and the walk home in thought about the school and her friends. A guy with ice-blue eyes and jet-black hair didn't even cross her mind.

...Well, not more than once.

--------------

Phew, second chapter, second day, over! And yes, finished before midnight on Saturday! Technically I still kept my promise to my one and only reviewer, whom I currently love. Go, Skye! Also known as, Wings of Water- SKYE. You rock! Wewt!

So, please review and suggest and all that! Still great motivation!

EraTomo


	3. Special: StoryPlot Changes, UNITE!

Hey guys, it's EraTomo here. You're probably wondering why I'm posting this, and wondering if I'm going to force my way through with excuses about why I've been busy.

Well, I'm not going to. I'm not going to have any bullcrap. I didn't update because of my laziness. Part of that laziness was that I lost my outline for this story and couldn't remember were I was going with certain little things that are specific to the plot. I began two chapters for this, forgot where I was going and stopped at the halfway point for them both. I apologize.

That does _not_ mean I will stop this story or put it on Hiatus. I completely _refuse_ to! I started this, and I'm planning on finishing it without half assing it in any way! That's a promise!

However, I must tell you that I have matured greatly over this summer. I've learned about the world, had fun times, became more quiet but less shy, and got over my anger problems. I've also faced more adult problems.

And in that is how this story will change.

I realize that most of my stories have been fluff-- completely and totally. Hardly any drama unless I was in a mood, everything perfect, we all know he's meant for her and she's meant for him, there's no side story to it, hardly any character progression, plot twists but rushed endings, et cetera.

Originally for this story when I wrote a plot outline this is the only story I've ever written a basic outline for. All of my other stories I'd publish a chapter, then sit down a month later and wing it with whatever came to my mind. I imagined little spouts of friendship, but they were all there for each other in the end, everyone would end up with their perspective someone, no one would be lonely, and it would all be a happy fun jolly good time without hardly any troubles once the couples were actually _in_ the relationship.

Needless to say, that makes for a very boring story to write, one where you're only writing to get to the next chapter so you can fill in all of the amazing fun stuffs you'd been thinking of in the end, where all the good stuff is supposed to be, and it results in putting off of slaving through another horribly boring chapter, and, rushing through the ending because it's such a joy to finally write.

It also makes it boring because it's a happily ever after, and hardly anything in life is happily ever after. I mean, even in Harry Potter, with Ron and Hermione, it wasn't all just "We're finally together! FUN TIMES ENSUE!"

No, there were still things to overcome.

And so, I can tell you, I will have a new chapter up tomorrow, the characters will act differently, the plot might make an uncertain turn and at the same time a completely expected one, but I can tell you, this story is going to be awesome.

...Just, most likely after the next chapter, which is bridging the gap between not awesome and awesome.

Also, there have been concerns about Kairi's personality...

Originally I intended to write her differently from me because I was putting too much of myself in my characters, and now that I've matured she's become a lot more like me... so I'll still be writing me. However, I'll just screw up my morals and strong feelings about things and hope I can make a clone of me that's not like me at all.

So, I give you peace.

And, a piece of chocolate for sitting through this piece of chocolate.

EraTomo


	4. Lightning Strikes a Tidal Wave

_**Hatched**_ Into _**Life**_

Like I said, you won't be able to see many changes in their personalities and in the story this chapter. I'm hoping this chapter will serve to bridge the gap. Anyways, let us START!

Disclaimer: I don't own Disney, Kingdom Hearts, or anything to do with Kingdom Hearts.

Summary: Life: Suddenly in Technicolor. The Drama hasn't even begun. xx; "I'm not kidding! If I had been able to protect her, this wouldn't have happened!"

--

Kairi laughed. Man, this was all so surreal. It seemed like there was no way she could believe she was having such a good time. Her friends were amazing, for the most part. Of course Sora sometimes bugged her, Riku was too flirtatious, and Namine was too much of a pansy. But for some reason, she was completely fine with it. These people were her friends. She would stick with them through anything.

Sora stood up and said something Kairi couldn't hear. He waved cheerfully and walked down the cold concrete path, turn a corner and was blocked by a great oak tree. Kairi looked at it for a while. 'What a beautiful tree...' she thought.

In fact, the whole park was spectacular. The grass was a luscious green, the trees huge, the flowers blossoming greatly as they were supposed to in Spring. There was a row of bushes in front of her, and they were shimmering brightly in the wind...

...Except, there was no wind. And only one of the bushes in the row was shaking. Kairi peered at it uncertainly. She hoped it was just a squirrel, and not something like a wounded cat or dog. Maybe a duck that had come for food... but as she peered closer she found two glowing orbs in a strange sky blue...

"...Sora...?"

Suddenly she couldn't breathe. Her face was wet. Had it started to rain? Why didn't she notice? When did it become so hard she couldn't breathe? And why couldn't she move? She fell forward...

...And shot out of her bed, gasping and sputtering. "M-mom!!" She yelled.

"I tried to wake you up! It's not my fault at all. Now GO GET READY FOR SCHOOL!" Her mother yelled, and took the giant blue mop bucket out of Kairi's room with her.

--

"So, how come you can never understand anything in dreams?" Kairi asked someone behind her on the bus ride to school.

"What do you mean?" The girl was a smart one in Kairi's math classed. Shocked to be addressed, she focused on the question and pushed her glasses up on the bridge of her nose.

"Like, even if you know it's the middle of October, if in your dream it's Spring, you're alright with it?"

"Well, the dream is a false reality of sorts. You can hear, see, smell, taste, and sometimes feel. Your body is fooled into thinking it is Spring... and even if it isn't, it's not like your logical brain is awake enough to realise," The girl explained, smirking slightly with the feeling of elated joy at being recognized as someone intellectual enough for the question.

"Oh... yeah. You're right. Thanks," Kairi said, and turned to look out the window. It was Sora's stop next. She wanted to ask him if he had had a strange dream either. As the bus slowed next to his stop, two figures came into view. One was wearing hoochie pants, a tiny excuse for a top, and thigh length socks-- as if they would make up for the rest of her outfit. Her hair in two braids, the top covered by a cute pink french-esque hat was Cherry Top. The other figure looked slightly uncomfortable, as if he was having a hard time being alive at that moment. She recognised him as Sora. As the bus pulled up, Sora searched the windows and Kairi shot back so as not to be seen. Satisfied with the fact that Kairi must be on the other end of the bus and unable to see him at this moment, Sora openly flirted back with Cherry Top, who had apparently been flirting heavily with him the entire time. That idea was confirmed when she shoved her bust up onto his chest, and Sora smirked uncharacteristically. Kairi was flabbergasted. What was that? A secret dating relationship? Why wasn't it all over school then...? What if he had a crush on her? How could he be fraternizing with the enemy after what she had done to Namine, not to mention Kairi herself?

Sora searched the seats and plunked in the one in front of Kairi.

"Hey... what's up?" He asked normally.

Kairi glared out the window. After a few moments of silence, he asked,

"Is... something wrong?"

She broke the glaring contest with her window and got out her cellphone. With the speed only a professional or a teenager could have, she texted Namine what happened.

"...So, Cherry Top looks pretty good today wouldn't you say?" She said it more like a statement. Sora's mental thought process showed on his face as he tried to figure out an excuse. At that moment, Namine got on and sat next to Kairi, shaking her head.

She stood up, leaned over the seat where Sora was, and whispered in his ear for a little while. Then she turned and whispered to Kairi, "Seriously, he's just a guy. It's completely natural for them. Only thing is, with guys, it's not like he'd ever date her unless he wanted something more, if you get what I mean. It's obviously not her personality he's into." She pulled back and Kairi opened her mouth to speak, when Namine lunged for Kairi's ear again.

"It's like if Neil Haskell was standing next to you with his shirt off, flirting with you, and he and Sora are in a spat. Flirting is harmless, and it's not like you wouldn't flirt back. I mean, his top is off. Besides, it's not like you'd remember anything about her personality."

Kairi's face melted at the mention of Neil Haskell, who was currently her favorite hottie ever made ever. She nodded in understanding. Sora scratched his head awkwardly. The rest of the bus ride was silent until Namine jumped.

"OH. I forgot to tell you! Um, school's closing in three days."

"WHAT?" Sora yelled.

"That abruptly?!" Kairi asked, shocked.

"It was in the motion for a while, the school board was too freaked to tell the parents. I just found out this morning. They have no money for the budget, and the school's not pulling in any revenue. They found everyone exchanges to different schools..." She paused dramatically here. "Boarding schools."

"But, 80,000 isn't really a lot of money for the government..." Sora trailed off.

"They found structure damages in the building. They'd have to tear it apart and start again, and that would cost well over 5 million. Considering how long it would take too, and we'd have to find new teachers because they aren't going to sit around without jobs for a few years."

"Is... everyone going to the same school?"

"...No... Apparently... some of the schools couldn't take in so many new kids at once, understandably." Namine said hesitantly.

--

That day in Band over the loudspeaker, they announced the school's closing date. The band teacher stood and asked everyone to pack their instruments away and start cleaning out their lockers. If they had free time afterwards they could help move heavier instruments and office equipment into the teacher's truck.

Most other classes were the same. The studies recieved numerous handouts to give to their parents; those kids who had cellphones had told their parents the news already. The office was flooded with phone calls and no one else could ask the office any questions.

The day ended without any happenings.

Kairi's mother, when she heard the news, went into her bedroom and beat her pillow. There was no way she could find another job, or the money to move. Kairi was just going to have to leave. With most parents, the story was similar. Pence's parents had enough money to move away, and they did just that; hopping town in the middle of the night when everything was packed and ordered... or so Kairi had heard.

--

The next day the bus driver apologized, explaining that on the last day there would be no transportation home for lack of funding. She also warned them to bring their own lunches in case of failing cafeterias and no volunteers. Exactly that happened. Kairi, along with her friends, tried to pretend that nothing had happened.

By the third day, that was futile. As the student lunch bell rang for the end of lunch, all remained sitting. They were unsure of when they would see each other again, if ever. It was there they spent the day until the last hour, and then they all marched separately towards home to pack. In two days, they would be off to their respective boarding schools. The schools sent them letters filled with what they would need for the trip, and they spent the last day home packing. Kairi's mother came to see her once, giving her what seemed like a cheap necklace. "I know it looks bad, but that necklace is the most important object in the world to me, and I want it with my most important person in the world."

Normally Kairi would have laughed at the cheesiness, but instead she stood and hugged her mom. Only when her mom left the room did she cry.

She talked with her friends on an instant messenger. Only Riku was excited to go. (Cheer up, guys! This iz like a tottaly new adventure!)

That night Kairi thought of how quickly lives can change. She pondered why she was making such a big deal over this, since it had been a long time in coming. Just like with cancer, it doesn't matter how long you had had it before. Once you get the message or die from it, only then are you shocked and saddened and afraid and worried. She wondered how some people's lives can change so quickly they weren't even there to see just how it happened, or they blinked and it was done and suddenly they were scarred for life. She realised there were people worse off in the world. At that moment, she didn't particularly care. She knew people with lives worse than hers, she knew she was never exempt from terrible stuff. She wasn't someone who thought, "I can't believe this happened to me! I know other people, but not me." She didn't do that.

But still, all the same, she was filled with some unidentifiable dark feeling. She turned over, and shrugged it off, settling into a quiet night of loud silence and no sleep.

--

Just to let you know, I haven't decided yet whether or not some of them will ever see each other again. As the tide turns, see?

EraTomo


	5. Plot Merge

Kairi smiled as she stared at the grand _Amelia's Academy for Strong Women_'s front doors from the courtyard. She never got past its brilliant splendor. The academy was four stories tall, as tall as the boy's version, with a large golden insignia of two A's in a circle with a smaller SW underneath plastered just above the double door entrance. It was a plain white, with windows well taken care of, and the corners of the building were rounded, for good feng shui.

Feng shui was just one of the things the school taught. The curriculum was one for the society's next leaders, and covered a wide range of topics. There was a religions class that focused on a different religion every day, karma, feng shui and pure spirit class, to keep one's spirit pure and give them good judgment. There were strategic classes, diplomacy classes, foreign language and policy classes, and mathematics, English language, chemical and physical science, and a history class that took the history of each country (or in Europe's case, continent) and dissected it liberally into bite-size pieces.

Twice a week they had a physical education class. It first taught them basic ways to free themselves from an assault, then proper physical defense, like punches, ending with complicated twists and combinations. The second semester focused more on weapons such as swords, daggers, staffs, and knuckles. There had used to be a gun lesson, but the government of this country had banned guns a year earlier, though there were still many who smuggled and hid them under their jackets.

Kairi smiled, softly feeling through the growing green grass by the trees. She had worked tirelessly to get here, because it was in her best interest. She was going to become a great leader, perhaps a military commander or advisor, and help solve the world's problems. This was her dream.

The bell tolled and rang throughout the grounds, a high pitched wailing. Across the fields that covered the ground in between, the guy's school bell rang out in a deep baritone groaning. The lunch period was nearly over, and it was about time Kairi go learn to speak in Arabic. She turned, with one last look at the beautiful flowers surrounding the twenty foot high walls around the school and courtyard. Then she bustled inside.

Around 7 o'clock, Kairi returned to her dormitory room early and closed the door with a heavy sigh. She would admit it to herself; it was exhausting to learn at this school. Even though classes got out at 5, most stayed in the library until much later, trying to decipher languages, math problems, and learn proper form for roundhouse kicks. She was early, having done her English essay over lunch and her extra math problems earlier that day at breakfast. She kicked off the large clunky black shoes that weren't part of her school uniform. The school uniforms required socks and closed shoes, but you could choose what kind. The rest of it consisted of a cream long sleeved and puffy shirt, with a darker yellow polo over it, and a navy blue loose ribbon tied around the neck. This was coupled with a limp gray skirt that ended just above the knees. It was comfortable, at least.

A few steps inside the room and her cell phone rang. She glanced at it: it was Sora.

"Hello?" She answered.

"Hi, Kairi!" Sora chirped on the other end.

"Ergh. What are you doing, calling me so late?" She scolded him quietly.

"I'm sowwy. I was tired of listening to Riku talk about his next date."

"Ah, I see your problem." Kairi had been best friends with Sora and Riku for years, each of them having the same dream (although Sora wanted to be Secretary of Defense and Riku wanted to be an established congressman). They kept their friendship up through phone calls and the occasional meeting when the school gave them overlapping days off.

She spoke with him for a while, and then to Riku when the phone was switched, and hung up after a while. She sat down with some popcorn and turned on the television to see what was on. Just as she found something good, a rolling ball of energy came bouncing into the room, towing a much less energetic girl.

"Ahhh! I can't believe I actually managed to get that essay in on time!" Selphie said, rubbing her eyes and dropping Namine's wrist.

"You're welcome…" Namine grumbled, having double- and triple-checked Selphie's essay.

"You're too late! I just got off of the phone with your silver haired beauty!" Kairi cooed. Selphie turned a brilliant shade of pink.

"No!" She cried, aghast. "Man. I was actually hoping he would _listen_ to me for once." She joked.

"I still don't understand why you like him," Namine said, setting down her backpack and slipping off her black slippers. "He's kind of a prick. And a pimp. But not the good kind."

"There's a good kind of pimp?" Kairi marveled.

"Yes, there is!" Selphie cried, indignant. "He's one of them!" She flew onto the couch and nuzzled there.

"Maybe you shouldn't speak so loudly," Namine mumbled, pulling her gray knee-length socks up from halfway down her shins. "You know how this school is."

Selphie grumbled. "I know. I don't understand it though. Didn't they say, when we were kids, that it was just _fake_?"

"Not anymore." Kairi said, staring up at the ceiling.

"Yeah… But really, who ever thought that would happen? I mean, the academies are practically identical."

"Original the girl's academy was a smaller version of the boy's academy, made for middle school students. Eventually the academy decided to let girls in, but that had a host of problems, so they shut down the middle school and changed this to a girl's academy." Namine recited almost from memory. Kairi marveled at her knowledge.

"That's still a ridiculous reason." Selphie growled.

"But it kind of makes sense…" Namine protested.

Kairi shook her head and went to sleep. Early to sleep, early to rise, less likely to die. She chuckled grimly.

"Wait, Kairi, did you hear about the girl they found at the halfway point across the field?" Selphie asked her quickly. Kairi turned to face her friend, and then shook her head.

"They found a guy next to her. Apparently the others ran when they saw the campus police coming, but it was too late for her. The guy was beaten up pretty badly; he's still in critical condition. But the girl…" Namine trailed off.

"It wasn't fair. One of them used a _metal_ pole. We're not allowed to have metal because stuff like this happens!" Selphie grimaced as she imagined the scene.

"Know who the girl was?" Kairi asked, slowly.

Namine shook her head. "Some junior named Rinoa. No idea other than that."

Kairi shook her head in pity, and then quietly stamped to the bedroom. It was a depressing thing that the school had no problems with this kind of thing, but she knew the reason why.

It had been fifteen years since it had started, but the campus was locked in an all-out bludgeoning and murderous war.

-nod, yawn, sleep-

EraTomo


End file.
